March 2, 2010
Quebec's Human Rights Commission is reviewing a complaint from a permanent resident expelled from a government-funded French class at Montreal-based Cégep St-Laurent for refusing to remove her niqab veil, which leaves only the eyes exposed. CÉGEP officials say the school tried on several occasions to accommodate the Egyptian woman, whose demands reportedly created tension in the class. Quebec's immigration ministry is also reviewing the case. CBC | CTV
Postscript: An Egyptian woman kicked out of a government-sponsored French class at a Montreal CÉGEP for refusing to remove her niqab has been expelled from another class, this time from a community centre for immigrants. According to media reports, when Quebec's immigration ministry learned of the woman's new enrolment, it informed her that its French immersion courses have to be taken with her face exposed, and the woman refused to take off her niqab. The woman has lodged a human rights complaint against her initial expulsion. Canadian Press | CBC
Following recent investments in research at the
Universities of Guelph and
Waterloo, the Ontario government announced Monday nearly $40 million under the Ontario Research Fund's Research Excellence program to be shared by researchers at Queen's, UWO, uOttawa, George Brown College, uToronto, and York U. The province is investing close to $69.5 million to support 21 projects and over 214 researchers across Ontario.
Ministry of Research and Innovation websiteGrant MacEwan University has begun construction of the 5,000-square-metre University Service Centre at the school's City Centre campus. The majority of the centre's $20-million cost is coming from the university, which received $1 million under the Knowledge Infrastructure Program for the project. The centre is part of the preliminary phase of MacEwan's vision for a single sustainable campus in downtown Edmonton.
MacEwan NewsAddressing the Nova Scotia Chambers of Commerce yesterday, premier Darrell Dexter said his NDP government will live up to its
election promise of adding 250 seats at the Nova Scotia Community College. Discussing the province's
impending labour shortage, Dexter noted the new seats will target trades and high-demand professions. The additional seats are part of a second phase of community college development, following significant investments by previous governments to modernize the system.
Halifax Chronicle-Herald |
CBC"Manitoba students have had it easy for too long," states an editorial in Monday's
Winnipeg Free Press, arguing that "fees have got to rise, prudently but surely." The editorial calls Manitoba's decade-long
tuition freeze a "misguided provincial policy" that put institutions on a "starvation diet." The editorial points to the University of Manitoba's estimation that it could generate $48 million more in revenue if it charged the same tuition as the University of Saskatchewan for a full-time general arts student. The editorial states that the "obvious solution" of raising tuition fees is complicated by the premier's promise to
rebate tuition to students while they're still in school, a promise the editorial says needs revisiting.
Winnipeg Free Press uManitoba's equity services office will investigate whether a racy magazine published by engineering students violates the school's respectful work and learning environment policy. A member of uManitoba's engineering society council defends the publication, stating that it is available only within the faculty of engineering building and no one has complained to her about its contents. Student publications at the
Universities of Western Ontario and
Ottawa have been criticized in the past for running offensive sexual content.
Winnipeg Free Press |
CBC The University of Victoria and the Sisters of St. Ann have signed an agreement in principle that will see the university purchase the Roman Catholic order's Arbutus Road properties, which include the St. Ann's Residence, Queenswood retreat centre, and a small dwelling. UVic is expected to acquire the properties in June. Under the agreement, the Sisters have the option of continuing to live in the residence until January 2013.
UVic News Release |
Victoria Times-Colonist Saskatchewan-based North West Regional College held a sod-turning ceremony at its Meadow Lake campus Monday for a new welding lab, which received over $1.4 million from the federal and provincial governments and the local school division. The new lab will provide greater capacity for the college and high school welding programs.
Saskatchewan News ReleaseDespite the market downturn, Dalhousie University's
Corporate Residency MBA program has achieved a 100% employment rate. In January, all students in the program's inaugural class began 8-month, salaried residencies with corporate, government, and non-profit employers across the country. In addition to a blog about their experiences, a class gallery on the program's
website features student profiles and a list of their residencies.
Dal Faculty of Management News |
Dal Corporate MBA website
